Travel Disasters

As much as I'd like to believe that travel is always rosy, never a pain, and usually a good time.... as a world traveler, I know better. For as many times as my life has changed in a positive way because of the experiences I have been fortunate enough to have while abroad, there are just as many that didn't turn out as planned.... Or to be frank, just sucked. For today's blog entry, I thought I'd compile a list of some of the worst experiences I've had abroad. Please feel free to leave us comments on your experiences as well. And to be clear, I've often learned as much from these experiences as I have the great ones... So this entry isn't all bad, I'm a better person now for having gone through them.

1. While walking down the street in Florence looking at a map, my friend and I were stopped by an unmarked car of guys claiming to be police officers. They were demanding that we show them our passports. Knowing that they had no reason to request them, we refused. They began shouting. Again demanding the passports, I again refused loudly and told them the only way they'd see them is if they took us to the police station. Getting angrier, they told us to get in the car. Again refusing, I said we'd only go there by following their car. Defeated, they left. Close call.

2. Having missed our bus to Eilat, Israel from Cairo, we I was stuck in Egypt with several friends without a way into Israel for a week. Needing to be in Israel by that next day, we managed to get ourselves on board a bus convoy of armed men heading to the closed crossing point of Rafah, Palestine to pick up their stranded countrymen for reasons I still do not understand. A very nice man wielding an uzi offered us a ride to the crossing point, where we'd be on our own to find our way through to Jerusalem. Long story short, we sat in an old warehouse in Palestine waiting to get our passports back for five hours. We weren't alone though! We shared some crackers and Coca Cola with a sweet elderly nun until we were let through. Good times.

3. A buddy of mine became deathly ill while in Salzburg, Austria with an unknown ailment. Upon reaching a closed hospital, we managed to commandeer a wheel chair to get him to the ER. BEcause the staff spoke no English, we spent many hours trying to get him admitted. We finally did, and three days later he was out. Scary, but we met some sweet people in the process.

4. I slept for a night in the new Thailand airport once. For any of you that haven't been there, it's gotta be the worst airport in the world to be stuck in. In addition to the fact that you cannot go to your gate and must wait in the absolutely enormous central reservations area, there are metal benches, air conditioning kept at about -56 degrees, and the loudest cacophony of noises and overhead announcements you ever heard stretching into the wee hours of morning. A tip from me to you: At the far end of the airport there is a gift shop that has fresh, hot noodles for about $1 that are served 24/7. Those noodles definitely got me through the night. Read more...

My Ten Funniest Travel Stories

Every time I speak to someone coming back from a far off place, it's not long before we begin swapping stories about the hysterical situations we managed to get ourselves into. Now I'm sure there is some psycho-analysis behind my travel style lending itself to somewhat hysterical happenings, but friends, that's another story for another time. Let's concentrate. I want to hear stories from our readers about absurd, hysterical, or comical things they've seen/heard or done while abroad. And no request here at Pangaea goes without a quid pro quo, so to get started, here's my top ten list of weirdest or funniest things I've seen myself while abroad:

1. I once traveled around Norway in a yellow van full of 17 people. We're not talking about a bus here either folks; picture a standard size van, with enough body parts hanging out of the window to draw any stare within a square mile. This is not the end of the story though. My Dad was one of the unfortunate souls who was half in the van, half out. At a stoplight outside of Bislett Stadium in Oslo, a lunatic woman came from nowhere yelling God knows what in Norwegian. Upon reaching the van she grabbed hold of my Dad and spent what was likely the longest light of my Dad's life trying to pull him out the window. Ole, our only resident Norwegian, explained afterward that the woman was quite fond of my Dad's eyes. To this day, I've never seen a funnier look than my Dad's frantic face as he fought to stay inside that van.
2. Last time I was in Thailand with my buddy Coy, we arrived at a hotel and were told the rate for our room was $4 more than we had expected because the room, "included Bigfoot free of charge." Enough said, we'll take it.
3. I stayed in a hostel with a buddy of mine once and we were given a third roommate we later named "The Brazilian Stomper." He spent the entire night jumping from his top bunk onto the floor making the whole room rattle. After a minute or so passed, he'd climb back up into his bed and repeat the jump. This went on for hours.
4. I worked in Tokyo for several months, and loved to find the most bizarrely translated signs. One of my favorites was my trash can. Somehow "trash can" was mistranslated to read: "It's here. Let's Supreme Can!"
5. Along those same lines, while at a restaurant in Prague I saw a menu item (that wound up being a local river fish) that was translated to English as: "His wife in the garlic." Do you even need to ask if I ordered it or not?
6. While in Egypt we met a shop owner, who upon finding out my friends name was Dave, started yelling "Beckham!" Beckham!" He proceeded to close his store for us, sit us down on the floor, serve us tea and cigarettes (none of us smoke), and show us Roman artifacts unearthed on his Grandfather's farm. Classic.
7. There is a hostel in Interlaken, Switzerland that is named Funny Farm. I won't get into all of the reasons here, but suffice to say the name barely cracks the surface of how crazy this place really is. By way of example, the showers are located in the corner of a dance club on premises. Walking through strobe lights and dj's to get to the showers is bizarre. Having your fingernails and soap glowing under the black lights while showering is ever weirder.
8. In a random neighborhood in Tokyo on a morning run, I once made a run for it and hid in a tube slide thinking I saw a lion. Why wouldn't there be a lion in Tokyo? I was prepared to take kids out, push people aside.... It's every man for themselves when a lion is on the prowl in Roppongi. Made sense at the time.... Long story short, it was a freakishly large red dog shaved to look like a lion (mane, tail, you name it).
9. So out of sync from jet-lag, my friend and I went to bed at 4pm in Paris once. We woke in the morning, showered, and went for breakfast. After eating eggs, we noticed it seemed to be getting dark. My buddy asked a woman in front of a hostel, "Is it day or night?" Confused, she said, "night". We had slept two hours and thought a day had passed. Awesome.
10. Last time I flew to SE Asia, I brought Ambien for my buddy and I to sleep through the flight. We figured we'd take our Ambien with a beer to "cheers" the trip. Let's just say Ambien and a beer is not a good idea. We later found about a half hour of video footage on his camera with us rambling on about lasagna and bread (not served on the flight by the way) that neither of us remember in the least. Read more...

The comfy traveler

I am lucky enough to be blessed with the gift of sleep. What I mean by this is I can pretty much sleep any where or at any time without a problem. But I am aware that most travelers are not so lucky and have a very hard time becoming comfy enough to get in a quick nap. My boyfriend is a perfect example of this.... I call him 'high-maintenance sleep guy'. So due to the fact that I am leaving for Cabo tomorrow (insert high pitch squeal of joy here) I thought I would showcase some good products for making travel as comfy as possible.

1. The cabin cuddler- you might look like a giant swaddled infant, but these things sure are comfy! I am always freezing on plane rides and these keep you so warm. Plus you don't have to use a airline blanket that probably has not been washed in two years.

2. For those of you fearful of all the germs lurking on a plane, this is a good investment. Its called the plane sheet and it is literally just that. Plus, I love the patterns!

3. And who wants to use those old outdated neck pillows? Why not just go all out and have a pillow in the shape of a monkey? Technically it is made for kids, but still.

4. Magellan's self inflating seat cushion. Not for people just out of hemorrhoid surgery, this pillow alleviates pain in your lower back caused by continuous sitting. Read more...

Random Travel Facts

We are always stumbling across funny and/or interesting travel facts here, so I thought I'd post a few here for all of our readers enjoyment:


1. Indonesia is the world's biggest archipelago with over 17,000 islands.
2. The most densely populated country is the Netherlands.
3. The Hawaiian islands are the most isolated group of islands in the world.
4. In Australia, a hurricane is called a willy-willy.
5. There is a Chinatown in Shanghai.
6. A pound of bread is consumed by the average Italian on a daily basis.
7. The Tokyo Zoo closes down for two months every year to give the animals a break from the people.
8. Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.
9. Kansas City has more fountains than Rome.
10. Icelanders consume more Coca-Cola per capita than any other nation.
11. According to Turkish tradition a stranger at one's doorstep is considered "A Guest from God" and should be accommodated accordingly.
12. The time system in Ethiopia is different than the rest of the world: 6 am is the start of the day.
13. 200 million people in China live on less than $1 a day.
Read more...

Off beat travel news

Has anyone been following the recent trend of super random travel news recently? I keep coming across these articles and I could not resist sharing them with you. Just a little fun to get your Memorial day weekend going.

1. Frontier Airlines will now charge more for passengers checking antlers. Yes antlers. Apparently during hunting season some people feel the need to bring animals antlers on a plane. Frankly, I think its unfair I can't bring on a bottle of water, when someone can basically bring on an newly dead animal carcass. Plus....eeeewwwwwww.

2. A Homeless man in Missouri is found sleeping on a plane after slipping past security guards. Well isn't that just f-ing great.

3. New Zealand pilots ran out of gas in a airplane, but were able to make an emergency landing in a open field. The plane came to abrupt stop directly next to a sign reading, "Jesus is Lord." I so wish I had a picture of this.

4. Two employees from Pinnacle Airlines in Pennsylvania are facing charges after taking a little 'jaunt' into the woods after dinner. The police Sergeant relayed the information by saying "They told the officer they wanted to go do it in the woods, essentially," (USA Today). The couple were discovered when individuals in the neighborhood summoned police, saying they had seen a naked man and an intoxicated woman. The police later found the man, hiding behind a shed and wearing flip-flops and a watch. Where do you begin with this one? Do you make fun of the Police Sergeant who said 'they wanted to do it'.....'do it'....is this Police Sergeant 6 years old? Or is it better to envision this guy horrified behind a shed in his birthday suit and flip flops? Ahhhh, this is just too good. Read more...

A Belizean Bus

I have this very vivid memory from when I was a kid. I was on a bus with my brother and parents in Belize and even at eight I remember thinking, oh good God. The bus was at least 20 year old and there was masking tape holding on one of the headlights and a big crack in the front windshield. Inside were mostly locals traveling with baskets, chickens, I think I even remember a goat. The bus was so packed full of people and their goods I had to sit on my dad's lap and I remember being too close to a man standing with his butt in my face. To top off this little adventure, during the trip a giant basket fell on my head from its insecure position above me.

The image of my family and I on this trip came rushing back to me today as I read this headline "American Airlines plans to charge its customers for all checked luggage". Now, I want to say that I don't blame the airlines for taking necessary steps to try and save themselves from bankruptcy. Yes, I miss my mid-flight meal and hate having to buy a $12 dollar sandwich, but I can at least understand. However, this new measure makes me more than skeptical. What do they think people are going to do? People are going to attempt to bring everything they can on the plane with them. Now, they might not let on a goat, but I bet planes are going to start looking more like that Belizean bus.

I don't know that I would stop flying American after this announcement, but it will certainly give me pause. I think what is hard for most of us to stomach is having all our amenities taken away from us that we have gotten accustom to. Personally, I would rather see a slight rate hike than be hit in the head with a piece of luggage falling from the overhead compartments. As someone who has had this happen, it is not pleasant. Read more...

Travel 'mis-adventures'

Here at Pangaea we love to hear about some of the funny things that happen when you are abroad. Of course, with any trip some experiences which are annoying at the time, become HILARIOUS when you come home and recount the story. I seem to make lots of people laugh with my 'labrador ate my passport' story, although as my friends can attest, there were lots of tears when I could not make it to Peru! Here are a few funny stories which happened to some of our clients:

1. One couple attempting to navigate the Italian freeway system in a tiny european car were clearly not doing a very good job as numerous drivers honked, cursed in Italian and made lewd hand gestures. When the couple's young daughter asked why everyone was so mad at daddy, the couple told her everyone was just excited they were visiting.

2. After a very long flight to Australia a young woman was waiting at the airport for a friend who lived there to pick her up. In a mixture of exhaustion and excitement to be in Sydney she inadvertently left her bag on the sidewalk. Needless to say, by the time she realized her mistake the Sydney police had blown up her bag on the sidewalk!

3. On a trip to Japan, a businessman was surprised to find 50 people in nylon jumpsuits doing jumping jacks outside an office building for a pre-morning office workout.

4. Mis-translated signs are always funny!

Tell us about funny things that have happened on your vacation! Read more...